Rotary engine.



F. II LINDENBERG ROTARY ENGINE. APPLICATION FILED MAY 4, I9. I @3552 I Patented N0m'20, 191?.

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A TT0RNEY.

WITNESSES" F. H. LINDENBERG.

ROTARY ENGINE.

MW W W APPLICATION LED MAY 4| I911- 1 v Patented Nov. 20, 1912. 2a I? 119 zsums-snczr 2. 210 67 v 1 a 1 \1\ x t I v g ea set.

. 1 in or bonus, omo, a: an comment, or convene, a co Specification of Pamnt.

Patented New. "il rear Application filed May t, 1917. dermal No. 163,353.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, FRANK H. Luann-nannc,a'citizen of the United States,

I. l g at Columbus, in the county of Franklin u:

cesses 12 and 13 of State of Ohio, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Rotary Engines, of which the following is a specification, reference being had therein to the accompanying drawing.

The present invention relates to certain new and useful improvements in rotary engines and especially to that class of engines in which a pair of parallel rotors having intermeshing tooth blades are mounted in a casing the walls of which coiiperate to confine the actuating fluid to the spaces between the blades of the rotors.

The especial object of this invention is to provide an engine of the class described of improved efiiciency wherein the losses due to imperfect fitting of the parts shall be reduced to 'the minimum and the expansion of the actuating fluid shall be continuous.

The devices by which I attain this object are fully set forth in the following specification and illustrated in the accompanying drawings of which- Figure 1 is a cross sectional view of my improved engine taken along the lines 1-1 of Fig. 2.

Fi 2 is a cross sectional view taken along the line 22 of Fig. 1.

Figs. 3, 4, 5, and 6 are diagrams illustrating the relation of the rotors alo the line of contact at different points 0 retation r Like numerals refer to similar parts in the several figures.

As illustrated in the drawings my improved engine comprises a casing 1 having In 2 by which it may be attached to any suitable foundation. Within this casing is mounted a pair of similar parallel drums 3 and 4 upon the peri hery of which are formed a plurality o mterm spirally disposed tooth blades 5 diverging from the transverse central plane of the drums to their ends and extending around a part of their circumference. These drums are mounted upon parallel shafts 6 and Z to which are clamped the inner races of the ball bearings 8 and 9 by suitable clamping members 10 and 11. The outer races of the ball bearings 8 and 9 are supported in re the end plateslt and screws 19. The upper l5 secured to the casing b suitable machine screws 16 to suplport t e rotors. The casings 1 entirely inc ose the rotors 3 and i and is provided at its upper side with an. inspection window 17 having a cover plate 18 secured in place by suitable machine portion of the casmg forms an exhaust chamber 20 which receives the fully expanded actuating fluid and discharges it into the atmosphere through the exhaust openin 21 at either side of the casing. The e aust openings 21 are protected by perforated plates or wire meshed guards 22 to protect the rotors from accidental contact with outside objects. The lower wall 23 of the casings closely approaches and contacts with the tops of the spiral tooth blades 5 on both sides of the central longitudinal plane of the casing for a distance equal to the spiral advance of the tooth blades. The contacting surface 23 cooperates with the tooth blades to form V shaped expansion chambers 24: adapted to receive the actuating fluid from the admission port 25 positioned in the central longitudinal plane of the casing. The port 25 is of such proportions that the admission of fluid to eac is cut ed by the succeeding tooth blades as soon as the said chamber has received its initial charge. As the contacting surface 23 extends only a distance equal to the spiral advance of .the tooth vanes 5 I this fluid will be exhausted from the expansion chambers at the instant it is expanded to the full efi'ective limit: It is therefore unnecessary for the end wall of the casing to closely fit the ends of the rotors, and I have provided clearance spaces 26 at each end of the rotors, which materially contribute to the satisfactory operation of the journal bearings and,-

at the same time, assist in the quick relief of the pressure in the expansion chambers.

tors 3 and 4 to revolve in opposite directions. At either or both ends of the enexpansion chamber too may project beyond the bearings to .form

shaft extensions,

such as 29, upon which maybe mounted any suitable power transmittlng devices, such as the spur gear pinion 30, through which the power of the engine may be transmitted for any desired purpose.

The drums 3 and 4 are built up of series of similar disks 31, preferably about half an inch in thickness, which are stacked upon the shafts 6 and 7. These disks 31 are provided with central circular apertures, adapt ed to fit closely upon the shafts, and are securely clamped between the collars 32 formed integral with the shafts, and the clamping rings 33 screw threaded thereto. A key 34 fixed to each of the shafts 6 and 7 secures the disks 31 againstrotation relative to each other and to their respective shafts, and each central circular aperture is provided with a plurality of equally spaced key ways 35, in the example here illustrated four in number, each of which is fitted to the key 34. Formed on the periphery of each disk 31 are spiral gear teeth 36 of the usual convolute contour and having faces inclined at any preferred angle to lines parallel with the axes of the rotor. In the example here illustrated the faces of the teeth have an inclination of approximately thirty five degrees to the axes of the rotor.

These teeth may be of any preferred number which is indivisible by the number of key ways, in the example illustrated the-number being nine. The relation of the gear teeth toxthe key ways is such that, when assembling dispose the disks upon the shaft, the rotation of each disk through one quarter of a revolut on relative to the next adjacent disk will form, upon the periphery of the drum, spirally zigzag tooth blades 5 having a gen eral inclination of approximately forty five degrees to a line drawn parallel with the axis of the rotors. By the advance of each tooth blades 5 thus formed will be offset in planes at right angles to the axis of the rotors to form secondary straight faces37 of approximately one fourth the width of the tooth. These spirally disposed zi zag tooth blades are arranged to diverge rom the transverse central plane ofthe rotors towardtheir ends and to extend around approximately one fourth of their circumferences. When such rotors are mounted in the casing 1, as above described, these spirally disposed tooth blades of one rotor intermesh with those of the other rotor and cooperate with the contacting surface 23' of the casing to form the V shaped expansion chambers 24, as above described. Should the thickness of the disk 31 be other than half an inch,

the number of teeth other than nine, or the number of key ways other than four, it is e sences apparent that the angle formed by the resulting spiral tooth blade with the longitudinal lines of the rotor would be different from that here illustrated. In such case the circumferential extent of the contacting surface 23 of the casing would be increased or decreased so as to conform to the spiral advance of the gear teeth of the rotor.

ll am aware that rotary engines have heretofore been constructed provided with parallel rotors having spirally disposed intermeshing to'oth blades extending in continuous helical lines from the transverse central plane of. the rotors to their ends and I am also aware that similar engines have been constructed provided with parallel rotors built up of series of disks upon the peripheries of which are formed gear teeth the faces of which are parallel with the axes of the rotors, said teeth being arranged in [echelon to form intermeshin spirallyvdisposed tooth blades extending rom the transverse central planes of the rotors to their ends in zigza helical lines. types of engines however possess inherent defects which it is the purpose of this invention to overcome. Numerous attempts have been made to E5 shape the tooth blades of engines of the first by their intermeshing, they will form perfect closures for the expansion chambers 24 along the horizontal central plane of the rotors. It has however, been found "in practice that such closure is only approximate there remaining unavoidable longitudinal spaces along which fluid may escape from one expansion chamber to the next. Such longitudinal leakages detract from the eficiency of the engine a greater or less amount, depending partially upon the nicety of the wor anship of forming the-tooth blades. In Figs. 3, 4, 5, and 6 is illustrated, by the continuous lines 38 and 39 the relation of such tooth blades of one rotor to those of the other along the line ofcontact at different stages of their engagement. ,At 40, 41, 42 and 43 may be seen spaces, extending longitudinally of the rotors, through which fluid may escape from one expansion chamber to the next. By the offsetting of the tooth blade of the adjacent disks, as above described, and as illustrated by the broken lines 44 and 45, the straight faces of the disks ofone rotor overlap the straight faces of the next adjacent disks of the other rotor so as to effectively close these longitudinal spaces and entirely prevent suchleakage.

When the contacting surfaces of the tooth blades extend in lines parallel with the axes of the rotors, the longitudinal faces of the tooth blade present sharp angles with the straight faces 37 which, at the high speed of rotation commonly obtained in such engines, produces wire drawing of the actuat ing fluid as Both of these mentioned type that,

it travels from the central reducing its efliciency an amount which increases with the velocity of rotation. By my improved engine, as above described, longitudinal leakage, and wire -drawing, are entirely eliminated thereby greatly increasing the efficiency of the engine.

What I claim is- 1. In a rotary engine of the class dethe transverse central plane of the drums to their ends and extending around a part of the circumference thereof, said tooth blades being composed of a plurality of rows of gear teeth set in echelon the intermeshing faces of which are inclined to lines parallel with the axes of the drums 2. In a rotary engine of the class described, the combination of a pair of similar parallel drums upon the periphery of which are formed a pluralit of intermeshing spirally disposed tooth b ades diverging from the transverse central plane of the drums to their ends and extending around a part of the circumference thereof, said tooth bladesbeing formed of a plurality of rows of gear: teeth set in echelon the intermeshing faces of which are inclined to lines parallel with the axis of the drum in the direction of the inclination of the tooth blades.

3. In a rotar engine of the class described, the combination of a pair of similar parallel drums upon the periphery of which are formed a plurality of interrneshing spirally disposed tooth blades diverging from the transverse central plane of the drums to their ends and extending around a part of the circumference thereof, said tooth blades being ofiset at spaced intervals to form secondary faces at right angles to the axis of the drum, the principal faces being inclined to lines parallel with the axis of the drum.

In testimony whereof, I afiix my signature, in presence of two witnesses.

FRANK H. LINDENBERG. Witnesses: I

DUDLEY T. FIsHnR, ANNA M. FnNLoN. 

